Post navigation

TV Time: Once Upon a Time 6.20

Two-Sentence Summary When the Black Fairy challenges Emma on her wedding day and brings her back to a time when she felt alone, flashbacks reveal that her mother’s wish to help her find her happy ending gave her a song that she’s always carried with her, which helps her understand that she’s never truly been alone. After facing the Black Fairy, Emma is finally able to marry Killian—right before a new curse descends on Storybrooke.

Favorite Line “They say that a captain’s heart belongs to his ship, but with this ring, it now belongs to you.” (Killian)

My Thoughts Greetings, fellow Oncers! I’m coming to you from my hotel room at Walt Disney World’s lovely Contemporary Resort, where I’m enjoying a much-needed dose of magic this week. Typically, I try to avoid writing of any sort on my vacations since I do so much writing when I’m home, but I couldn’t leave the NGN Family without a place to talk about this episode. And after hearing the news of Jennifer Morrison’s departure from Once Upon a Time this morning, I also knew I couldn’t leave you without a space to talk about what she has meant to you, what Emma Swan has meant to you, and what you think is going to happen to the show without her should it be picked up for a seventh season.

I know that I am going to miss both Emma Swan as a character and Jennifer Morrison as an actor on my favorite television show more than I ever imagined before learning the news today. Writing about Emma’s journey completely changed me as a writer and as a woman, and meeting Morrison remains one of the highlights of my life as a fangirl. While I’m incredibly sad to lose this character (and am really hoping the show just ends instead of trying to go on without her), I’m so thankful for what Emma brought into my life—including most of you reading this. NGN became what it is today because of how much fun I’ve had writing about Emma’s journey and how much I’ve loved connecting with all of you about it.

A few members of the NGN Family have reached out to me today about writing a letter to Emma for The Fan Mail Project, and I wanted to let all of you know that you can definitely do so. I haven’t started putting together that part of the book yet, so please don’t shy away from writing something about this character if she’s meant something to you over the years. You can send them to nerdygirlnotes@gmail.com whenever inspiration strikes you. And if you already wrote to Emma but want to edit your letter, you can always do that, too. (Lord knows I’m going to be adding so much more to mine!)

But enough talk of endings…Let’s talk happy beginnings instead! Since I have to be up early to catch a flight on Soarin’ Around the World at EPCOT, I’ll leave most of the analysis up to you this week, but here are some discussion topics to get you started:

Is anyone else still recovering from the perfection that was Josh Dallas in this episode? He was definitely my episode MVP, and I haven’t stopped singing “Powerful Magic” all day. Both he and Ginnifer Goodwin channeled their inner Disney royalty in this episode, and I loved every minute of it.

My favorite thing about this episode in general was how much fun everyone seemed to have doing it. It’s like you could feel the enthusiasm of the cast leaping through the screen, and it was contagious. An episode like this is only as good as its cast, and this was just another reminder that the Once Upon a Time cast is one of TV’s best ensembles.

The sing-off between the Charmings and Regina was everything that makes this show special: It was cheesy and ridiculous, but somehow it worked—and that’s all because of the energy of the actors. I just about died laughing at the look on Regina’s face when they started singing at her.

I really loved that this episode dealt with Emma’s relationship with both of her True Loves—Henry and Killian. I didn’t expect it to have so much Emma/Henry interaction, so I was pleasantly surprised. One of my biggest complaints in recent reasons has been the lack of scenes between those two characters, whose relationship was once the center of the whole show, so it was nice to finally give that relationship time in the spotlight again—with Henry encouraging Emma and believing in her just as he always had. She found her strength and her song because of her son, and he found the way to help her because of his book—the same book that gave him the hope to find her in the first place.

The choice to use the same melody for “Emma’s Theme” that’s been underscoring her scenes for years was genius. Morrison sounded like a true princess singing it, but what gave it the emotional power it needed was the fact that it was a melody that was as familiar to us as it was to her. It was the song that’s lived in her all her life, and the best way to get the audience to believe that was to use a melody that’s been associated with Emma for as long as we’ve known the character.

Emma and Killian’s wedding was everything I could have asked for as a fan—from both of her parents walking her down the aisle to Killian’s awestruck face throughout the entire ceremony. No one plays sincere adoration like Colin O’Donoghue.

I’m a sucker for a set of personal wedding vows on TV shows, and these were so wonderfully personal. I loved Killian talking about a heart full of love being precious treasure because I’ve always thought of him as seeing Emma and their love as the most precious treasure he’s ever found. And Emma saying that being a product of True Love doesn’t mean you believe it will happen for you made me cry. That’s her entire journey in a nutshell—a journey of belief. And now she believes she’s worthy of the love her parents have. She believes she can be happy, loved, and supported—and so much of that belief comes from Killian and the steadfast devotion he has always shown her. Both of these characters have come so far as individuals and as partners, and those vows were the perfect summation of that journey.

“A Happy Beginning” belongs in a Disney World parade. If I’m ever having a bad day, I know that will be a song that will always cheer me up.

Will anything ever be better than seeing Emma Swan so happy that she had to twirl around in her wedding dress and throw herself into her husband’s arms so he could lift her off the ground as they sang to each other about the hope that their story is just starting? The idea that the woman who made a birthday wish that she wouldn’t have to be alone had a joyous wedding surrounded by family and friends is currently making me very emotional.

Emma’s belief that she and her loved ones will defeat whatever curse the Black Fairy throws at her shows how far she’s come from the days when she didn’t even believe in curses—let alone in her ability to break them. She believes now—in her own strength and in the fact that she doesn’t have to be alone to be strong. And that strength—rooted in love and hope—will be what helps her defeat the Black Fairy and truly start her happy beginning.

I know I didn’t get a chance to touch on everything about this excellent episode (which I think will go down as one of my favorites of the series when all is said and done), but if you’re looking for excellent analysis until I get back to my normal posts next week, I highly recommend the reviews of this episode written at MGcircles, ScreenSpy, and Fangirlish by some of my favorite fangirls!

23 thoughts on “TV Time: Once Upon a Time 6.20”

Thanks, sweets, for taking time out of your vacation for this. I hope you’re having a lovely time.

First off: The elephant in the room: Jen leaving the show. This is understandable –she’s been doing network TV for quite some time (House, HIMYM, and OUaT) which has got to be exhausting. She wants time for her friends and family and to explore creatively. Good for her. Should the show go to season 7, she said would appear in the first episode. I believe I also read that should would be open to additional appearances (or maybe that was just the producers leaving the door open for her).

I think most of us here connect with Emma more than other characters, so this is a blow. It’s difficult to imagine the show without her and all too easy to imagine the soap-opera craziness they could use to explain her absence. It’s tempting to turn into Grumpy and start running around announcing the sky is falling. I’ll admit, I’ll proceed with caution should they renew. For reasons. (Morrison seems protective of this character, so I can’t see her leaving voluntarily without leaving Emma in a good place. Now, what happens should they get a S7? Yeah. One of the reasons. There are more.*cough* Castle *cough*) The writers could surprise me, though, so I’m not ruling anything out.

Whatever happens, we have gotten an amazing Emma Swan story. It’s a testament to the power of story that we feel this deeply about a fictional character. Let’s celebrate that.

On to happy squeeing about the episode.

I have to admit, I was nervous when this episode was announced. On the one hand, it’s a spectacularly brilliant idea given the premise of the show and the talent of the actors. On the other hand, we’ve seen that combination go wrong. (Hello, Flash.) “Once More, With Feeling” pretty much spoiled all of us by showing what was possible with musical episodes. So, yeah, I was concerned.

I needn’t have been.

The songs

Powerful Magic. Goodwin and Dallas did such a lovely job. The song itself was wonderful, but the delivery was smashing. Snow’s initial confusion . . . Charming’s exuberance and excitement. (Seriously, how much more charming can the man get?) Just brilliant. Plus her voice . . . and his voice. Am I the only one who wondered what would happen if we tried the singing approach in real life? This is how convincing those two were.

Love Doesn’t Stand a Chance. This one didn’t quite work for me. Something just felt slightly off – it was good, but didn’t quite hit the bulls-eye like the others. I’m curious, is it just me?

Rumple: I did at least expect him to start talking in verse. Oh, well.

Wicked always wins. I’m so over this phrase. But Bex knocked this song out of the park. Wow.

Revenge is Gonna Be Mine. Oh good grief that was good. We got flirty Hook, we got dancing pirates, we got sexy Hook . . . singing. (I have to admit that I do wish they had given Hook different lyrics for this song. I really feel terrible going around singing about revenge . . . but I can’t help myself, it’s so catchy.) Plus, he did that on a broken foot? Impressive.

The sing-off. Oh yeah, that was fun.

Emma’s theme. Oh my that was some good singing and phrasing. That was just gorgeous. And how AWESOME was it that she had those songs with her the whole time . . . that she fought evil with MUSIC!! MUSIC!! (First this show gives us the power of stories, and then the power of music? Be still my heart.) I also loved Henry’s role in her discovery of this.

The wedding. Yes. Just yes. A happy beginning< – absolutely. Loved that they’re approaching this as their happy beginning rather than an ending. Loved the happy dancing. (All the happy dancing.) Can you imagine Emma Swan of Season One, twirling like this? Yep, that’s how far she’s come.

I also now want to hear Jen and Colin sing songs from Tangled. One duet was not enough. It was amazing . . . just not enough. 🙂

Additional things that made me happy:

Smee!

Grumpy announcing the curse coming. (It just wouldn’t be a curse otherwise.)

McKenna Grace’s performance.

The return of the red vest. (Sorry, I may have just drooled on the keyboard.)

First, I thought I was crazy and alone in thinking the Flash musical ep was a mess! I should have known you would get me :). I cringed through the whole thing, yet all I had here was a huge dumb happy grin. Even when it didn’t really make since why they were singing, I didn’t care, it still felt right, and that is usually the hardest sell of all.

It’s funny you said that Happy Beginnings needs to be in Disney parade. I agree. And Powerful Magic needs to be in and a theme of a Castle forecourt show. I tweeted the composers that and they “liked” it. Both of those songs sound like they are right of Disney movies and shows. Loved them both!

Thanks Katie for doing this for your readers while on vacation. I was wondering how you were doing with all this OUAT news coming out while you’re at WDW! I imagine being at WDW helps 😊

In reading your commentary, one of the things that first struck me was your favorite line, “They say a captain’s heart beings to his ship……”. While reading that, I was thinking how that line could have sounded pretty corny with the wrong delivery, but Colin makes everything Killian says to Emma so sincere that it sounded like a solemn and heartfelt pledge. So, bravo for that to begin with.

The music was delightful, and I remained unspoiled on that at least! I wanted to get the full effect of a first hearing during the episode. I’m always concerned that musical numbers are going to pull me out of the story, especially if not done well. Especially so on a show where it has never been used before. However, the songs seemed to fit in perfectly with the characters and the story…and they sounded like Disney songs. Everyone threw themselves into their performances and seemed to have fun with it. I give much credit to the actors for carrying it off so well that it seemed natural. Snowing, Hook, Emma and Zelena’s were especially standouts to me. I also loved the idea of music as powerful magic, which I think is true to an extent. You can pour so much more feeling into a song and reach people in an entirely different way with it. I love that they used Emma’s theme for her song. It brings to mind when I used to watch Ally McBeal and there was an episode about finding your “theme song.” Emma had that theme locked away in her heart and she finally opened herself up to it, which was beautiful! I always love seeing her find her strength and she draws it from those who love her.

The wedding was joyous and I wish we could have stayed with it a little longer. These characters deserve all the happiness for what they’ve had to endure, and I’m glad to see them get those moments together. I’m not sure what they have planned for the finale, but I admit to being a little nervous for Emma’s happy ending. Whatever happens with her is gong to color my viewing experience of the whole show……and I very much expect to go back and watch this series again…..and again! But with Jennifer leaving, I trust that she’ll do Emma justice and we will be happy with the resolution of her story.

While I am obviously sad to see her leave, and with the potential series end this year, I’m very thankful for all the cast, crew, writers and musicians who have worked so hard to bring us Emma’s story. I wish Jennifer Morrison much success and happiness in her future endeavors, and I will continue to follow her.

I was unspoiled on the music as well. (However, I was grateful that Shauna reported back on it. It made me feel better to know the music was good.) I’ve noticed that if I watch the sneak peaks it tends to take me out of the experience when I’m watching it. I know for some it heightens the enjoyment.

I’m impressed, too, with what Colin can do with lines. (Seriously, the first kiss scenario could have come across as emotional blackmail with a different actor.) It really is nice to have these sentiments expressed with such sincerity.

I’ll be nervous with you. As I mentioned, I don’t think Jen would leave the character in the lurch — which is one the reasons I’m kind of hoping they just end here — but you never know. As you say, the finale can color all that has come before. I’m fairly confident we’ll get a good ending . . .

virtual rum for everyone!! I am definitely with you on being nervous about how they are going to explain Emma’s absence should there be a new season. I also believe Jen would fight for her character’s story, but at the end of the day, its probably not her choice, this is ABC, and TV is a business, and thats why my hope is laced with healthy dose skepticism. They mentioned if there is a season 7 she would be back for the season premiere, and I think that idea is giving me the most anxiety. That we are going to have to wait all summer to see if they decide to kill her off at the beginning of next season? Although if I get even a hit of that happening I think I am going to have to live in denial and not watch. Gah, its a good thing I have non virtual rum with me too.

I have to admit that I’m treating this as the series finale, and then we’ll see about S7 (if it even happens) . . . I’d feel more optimistic if there weren’t still a year left on Colin’s contract (or that’s what I’ve read). Half of Captain Swan would just feel weird . . . but we can jump off that bridge when we come to it. 🙂

I am so impressed that you and Tempest remained unspoiled! Looking back I dont regret listening to the soundtrack, but I was bummed that I had seen all the sneak peaks, because I definitely enjoyed the second half of the episode much more than the first, and I think a lot of that had to do with the fact I had already seen the first 3 songs. I was expecting a bit more enchanted forest stuff of tie everything together, but since we pretty much just got the songs, I felt even more spoiled.

Thanks for this Katie- and for always creating a beautiful, open-minded place for oncers to enjoy. I have thoroughly enjoyed your reviews and am grateful that you took the time to post this while on vacation. I thought the musical episode was pure genius and am happy we have it, regardless of what the future holds. I saw today that ABC picked up American Idol which people have been speculating will take the Sunday night time slot. I guess only time will tell, but like so many others I would actually be relieved to hear that the show is ending, then to go on without Jen,Ginny, Josh, Emile, and Jared.

Making this short & simple: Emma having the song(s) in her heart all this time, is this probably if not the exact reason why Cora couldn’t get her heart in S2??? If so, though I feel that it is somewhat convenient to have it explained, I also find it satisfying at the same time.

Ive been traveling for work and its been keeping me from here and its been super frustrating, because boy do I have feelings. I need to rewatch the musical ep before I comment because it hasn’t even been a week but it seems like forever after the week I have had, but I do want to talk about Jen leaving and the show being renewed, now that we officially know both.

First, I am not someone that tends to look at celebrities as role models, but Jen is someone I have a huge amount of respect for. She has an incredible amount of self awareness, freely admits she is not perfect, genuinely wants to better herself, and is honest with her opinions and feelings even when others may not agree or like them. Those are all qualities I admire and strive for in my own life. I am also a people pleaser that tends to sacrifice what is best for me for what others want of me, and I admire Jen even more for her decision to do what was right for her knowing it was going to upset and disappoint others. Some may see that as selfish, but I think selfishness on some level gets a bad rap in our society. You have to take care of yourself before you can take care of others. And I hope she gets to enjoy herself and does a kick ass job representing women as a director and producer, because Hollywood definitely needs more women in those roles.

As for the show, I will fully admit to being nervous about how they are going to move forward when it comes to Emma and CS. I want to see that happy beginning last more than two seconds, or what the heck was the point? I am proceeding with caution (my TV scars run deep), but I am still very much open to the idea of still watching. It just might not be on my calendar every week like it has been the past 4 years. I have said before I think this show does a great job at creating interesting characters, they just aren’t always great at giving those characters something to do. I hope they have found a way to reboot in a way that will keep things interesting.

I hear you on this. I must admit that I’m sorely tempted to stop at the season finale. I have feeling that they’ll leave everyone in a pretty good place at the end of S6 since they knew it might need to serve as a series finale. I’m not going to say I won’t watch after that, but I will proceed cautiously . . . I want that CS happy ending to be intact. (Sorta like the Charmings — we know there’s going to be life stuff, but they’ll handle their life stuff together.) Actually what I’d like is for Jen to film an episode’s worth of Captain Swan moments that they could just sprinkle throughout the season . . . 🙂

I love your point on “selfishness.” Often what gets designated as selfishness in another is simply that person prioritizing other needs over mine . . . so it’s really a type of selfishness on my part. Jen has the right to decide her priorities. She’s given us 6 years . . . that’s a lot. Honestly, my side-eye is going toward the creative team . . . do NOT screw up Captain Swan. Actually, I’m questioning the motives of ABC over Jen or even the OUaT team. (The OUaT folks want to tell stories. That’s awesome. The network wants money. Plus the network took Peggy Carter away from me. The network does not have my trust.)

I think we need a designated watcher — someone who isn’t emotionally invested — who can tell the rest of us if it’s safe to watch. 🙂

Once again, Katie, thanks for giving us a space to process all of this . . . and to share the virtual rum.

Shauna, I sooo look forward to reading all your feelings on the musical episode . . . I may need to watch again, too — just so I can FULLY appreciate your post. 🙂

Networks will always be the enemy! I do love your ‘lets film a seasons worth of CS in one day plan!’, lol.

I think I would even be ok if they did a large enough time jump that she was gone for some reason, but it was inferred they at least got SOME time to be together and be happy. This fandom would have no problem filling in 10 years worth of domestic moments in between. But the new characters they cast both sound kind of sad (the older male whos lost hope, and a young girl from a broken family) so maybe that is making me a bit nervous too.

Tumblr will probably be my designated watcher. I doubt I will watch the season 7 premiere without knowing exactly how they handled this whole thing first.

Glad you’re back! I am getting more nervous as the Season 6 premiere closes in on us. I do plan to watch the next season, because I’m curious as to what they have planned. I’m not ready to say goodbye to all the characters, but I also want them to protect and respect the journey we’ve been on with Emma these past 6 years. I have to admit to being somewhat disappointed. I’d always hoped to see more of Captain Swan being a kickass team together. However, I don’t blame JMo at all. She knows what’s best for her life and her career. I will definitely be looking out for her projects in the future!

I am also bummed we didnt get more of them being a team these past few seasons (I think this is why seasons 3 and 4 were so much more satisfying from a CS perspective than 5 and 6). It would have been great to have less separation and internal secret keeping and more fun adventures. I am still a little bitter about the split timeline of season 5A and am waiting for someone to re-edit the whole thing in chronological order so I can enjoy all the romantic Camelot stuff without the Storybrooke angst.

Yes! to all of this. (Jennifer, you’ve summed up my thoughts beautifully. Shauan, a adore the idea of an edited 5a. Plus it’s just nice to know that someone else “gets” my nervousness about this.) If I don’t get to see Captain Swan adventures, I want them to leave us in place where we can easily imagine Captain Swan adventures. (I would also like more Captain Charming adventures as well as Snow’s “mother-daughter bonding time.”) I get the sense that the finale will leave us in a good place.

Ok musical thoughts time!! As I distract myself from the reality that finale is tonight.

I was quite nervous for a musical episode, but they managed to pull it off. When I first heard Hook’s song, I was entertained, but slightly disappointed since it was A) a flashback and B) not very narrative lyric wise. Everything he sang about we already knew. But I was later happy to discover that the other songs were much more narrative plot wise.

And while the idea of all the songs being flashbacks was originally disappointing, I actually ended up loving the way they did it. It was a nice little recap of all the characters initial motivations, both good and bad, and seeing how far they have come since then. I particularly liked Zelena’s since her story doesnt get as much replay as the others. There wasnt a lot of plot stringing all of it together, but there really didnt need to be. We know enough of the story after 6 years to just go with it, especially if nobody is going to remember in the end.

The evil queen vs Charmings sing battle was one of my favorite parts. Which again, if you listen to the album its disappointing because its just two songs they already sang put together, but I loved it on screen. Its one of the moments that is pure camp but still worked. I mean, their songs were magic!! I loved seeing the Charmings on equal magic playing field with the Evil Queen, even if it was short lived. I also like that it implies that each of them had one specific song in their heart. Their song was about what mattered most to them, it wasnt just about randomly singing about everything as they went about their day.

I think this might be controversial but I really liked the rooftop wedding location. Yes ok they were up there with water towers and powerlines and ugly tar roofs, but that is their home. Storybrooke isnt really a picturesque resort town. And for being CGI, it actually looked good enough where it wasnt distracting.

I do wish the storyline in the present made a bit more sense. Why is Emma still trying to do everything alone? Emma I love you, but you do not go see your fiance on your wedding day and tell him you are running off to fight a battle alone and no you cant come, and sorry I might die before the wedding. Emma always talks about wanting to sacrificing herself for everyone else’s happy endings, but girl, you are Killian’s happy ending. Pretty sure he has zero desire to live if you arent around, and he would much rather die fighting at your side than for you to die for him. So yeah, that part made me a little ragey. It also made Killian a little ragey too, who decided to go all revenge murder-y, on his wedding day no less. Although Rumple’s “I did this to protect my family, something YOU will never understand” totally earned him a blow dart to the neck. What the hell do you think Killian is doing there in the first place? Oh yes, trying to protect HIS family from being murdered by yours you piece of crap.

Ok rant over. If I had to pick my favorite part of the whole episode, it has to be Emma twirling at her wedding during the final song. The Emma we met in the pilot was NOT a twirler. She was someone who was afraid to love and depend on others and to even show happiness. Seriously, how often did Emma smile in the first few seasons? The answer is barely at all. But now she is so happy she wants to twirl around on her wedding day while her husband looks on with an equaly happy expression on his face and she doesnt care who the heck knows it. And I am equally happy for her.

Other little things I loved:
-Jimminy singing his little cricket song
-For all of eternity.
-Archie and Marco singing to each other.
-The na na na part of the finale song where everyone was throwing their hands up in the air. Its the new Y-M-C-A.
-Henry’s single line in the closing number. It makes me smile every time.
-That fun little transition from Emma hugging Killian to him standing at the alter
-Emma’s 100% confidence as the curse cloud enveloped them.

Questions:
-Any theories as to what happened to Hook in the flashback? I am just picturing him waiting on his ship for the Charmings to come back and they never do (since Regina poofed them back home) and then he wakes up in the morning and has no idea why he is at the queen’s castle. It would have been fun if they had the time to tie this into how he ended up attacking Belle in the queen’s dungeon.
-I guess black fairy dust can actually do more than just turn people into bugs?
-Why does this version of the dark curse not require a heart? Was that just something the black fairy threw in there for fun to torment whoever cast it?
-Did Emma have everyone’s song in her heart or only her parents? Seems like having all those revenge songs in her heart wouldnt have really been helpful, UNLESS they were meant as reminder of the new happy beginnings she was fighting for.
– Does “enough fairydust to curse Storybrooke 10 times over” mean that everyone just leaving the town before 6pm wasnt an option?

Emma working alone — I do agree that should remember that she’s Killian’s happy ending and he’d rather go down fighting with her. I can (sorta) see not involving the rest of the family — but leaving out Killian? not so much. I mean, after all, if Henry hadn’t been involved, what would have happened? Even when you think they can’t help . . . they can.

Killian’s dart to the Dark One? Brilliant. (Too bad mum showed up.)

Those “na-na’s” were awesome. And the dancing — loved all the dancing.

As for Hook in the flashback . . . he’d blame it on the rum. 🙂 (Mr. Smee! Why are we here? Is there any rum left?)

I now want the “everyone packs up and leaves Storybrooke” episode with the Black Fairy casting a curse over a ghost town. (Where did everyone go?? This wasn’t part of the plan! Come back and be cursed!) I guess they assume the curse will follow them or that she won’t let folks leave. It would have been nice if the writers had established that folks couldn’t leave.

I wonder if the need for a heart will come up in this episode? Does she even love enough for something like this?